Bonus Kisses - Freya Barker Page 0,85
ended much differently. Having Sofie open up to me earlier was an unexpected gift. If there was ever a time I could feel Nicky’s presence it was then, under the millions of stars dotting the night sky.
Staring into the flames, I’m lost in thought and don’t notice Rafe walking up until a warm hand slides under my dreads, giving my neck a squeeze.
“I’m grabbing another beer. Want some wine?”
“I’ll have a beer too.”
Rafe leans over me and I tilt my head back for the kiss I know is coming. It’s short but sweet and ends sooner than I’d like. It doesn’t take long before he’s back, pressing a bottle in my hands and taking the seat beside me, propping his feet up on the edge of the firepit.
“Thank you,” he mumbles, reaching over to take my hand in his.
“For what?”
“I heard you and Sofie talking. You managed to find the exact right things to say to her. I know it’s short-sighted to think there won’t be snags along the way, but she’s in a better place than I expected her to be.”
“Spencer was a bit of a surprise, wasn’t he?” I share with a grin. I’m sure the easy acceptance by the little boy went a long way to making his sister more receptive to the idea of her father and me together.
“Life should be pretty simple at five. Sleep, eat, play, and as long as the people you care about are happy, you are too.” There’s a wistful tone to his words.
“How old were you when you ended up in the foster system?”
“A toddler. I don’t really remember anything from before. Apparently my mother overdosed on heroin, and I was found wandering around the parking lot of a seedy motel in nothing more than a dirty diaper.”
I tighten my grip on his hand. “Did you ever try to find out more? Maybe find your father?”
“Nothing to discover. My mother is still listed as a Jane Doe: no papers, no name, and no record of my birth anywhere. I didn’t have a name.”
“Who gave you one?” I look at his profile, lit by the flames, showing the dark shadows and deep angles of his handsome features.
“I have no idea. I’m guessing someone with CPS where I ended up.”
I didn’t think there was more for me to discover about Rafe, and although he may not seem to know much about his own background, it goes a long way to explaining the choices he made.
“You’re amazing,” I echo his words to me from earlier today.
He turns to me, his clear blue eyes smiling. “You’re stealing my line.”
“Nah, it fits you better,” I tell him. “I was blessed with a family to grow up in—a place I belonged—and only now am I learning to appreciate that. But you…you didn’t have any of that. You had to claim yourself a place in this world—create a family to belong to—and you did that without any guidance. That’s amazing.”
Other than the tight grip of his hand on mine he has no response, but it’s enough to put a smile on my face as I stare into the dying fire.
I’m not sure how long we sit there, but eventually we get up, tidy up the campsite and toss sand on the fire. We crawl into the tent, only to find the kids huddled together in the center, leaving room on either side of them. The dogs go into their crate we set up at the foot end without coaxing and curl up together.
When I’ve settled into my sleeping bag next to Sofie, I turn on my side to find Rafe propped up on an elbow. His eyes drift over the sleeping forms of his children before they find mine.
“I’m blessed,” he whispers.
Rafe
“It’s cold!”
I glance over to where Spencer just joined Taz and Sofie in the water. The dogs are barking excitedly, neither getting more than their paws wet.
Both kids are wearing life vests, regardless of their complaints. They may be fine swimming in a pool, but the river, with its unpredictable currents, is another story.
We’re all sporting a tan after a week with near perfect weather. A week that’s gone by much too soon. I’m going to miss the easy routine we’ve fallen into. It didn’t take Taz long to coax the kids into the water, despite Sofie’s fears of creatures touching her under the surface. Every morning while I built a fire to make coffee and cook breakfast, the three of them would splash around in